Let the Games Begin
by Ad Astra Per Alia Porci
Summary: Snicker. A visit from Nick's cousin James, his childhood rival, changes Nick and Sara's relationship forever. Sometimes you need a little competition to get into the game. No timeline and no Grissom. R&R please.
1. Introducing: James Stokes

A/N: It's been a while since I've posted; I had decided some time last year that I wouldn't submit any work unless it was already completed. So although I have had several story beginnings since around April last year, I didn't bother putting them up since they're all incomplete. I was cleaning up my computer the other day and found them again... in a last-ditch effort to finish this story, I've decided to start posting it slowly, hoping that feed-back or simply the pressure of having it out there will motivate me to finish it. I have eight installments ready but would like to have at least two more for a good ending... wish me luck. Hope you like it!

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James Stokes sat idly by the front door of the Vegas crime lab. He was seated in a plastic chair leaning forward with his elbows resting on his knees. Another glance at his wristwatch confirmed that he had been sitting there for about half an hour. He had already finished off the car magazine that he was absently rolling with his hands and his right leg was bouncing uncontrollably. He switched his view from the lab's choice of tiling – which, although very nice, was becoming uninteresting rather quickly – to scan the hallways again.

As he caught sight of the brunette strolling towards him with her head buried in a file folder he stood up and tossed the magazine on the seat behind him. _'Now what was her name?'_ he pondered as he straightened his clothes and ran his fingers through his hair. _'Something to do with killing… Murder? No. Manslaughter? Maybe: Man… Amanda… Amanda Slotter? Nah. Umm… Homocide? Hom… Homer… Homer Side? Side? Side… that sounds about right. Oh! It was alliteration! Sssssssss…suicide! Sue Side? Sue-A-Side? Sara Side? I got it! Sara Sidle!!'_ A smile broke across James's face as the name clicked in his head and he started to walk towards her.

Sara glanced up as she walked through the doors separating the reception area from the rest of the lab and her attention was quickly drawn to an attractive man grinning widely at her. He had wavy blond hair that was worn in a stylishly messy way; it was shaggy but it definitely wouldn't be considered long. He had a distinct five o' clock shadow which Sara would have said gave him a rough edge had he not been sporting such a charming grin. There was something about that smile that reassured her instantly and she was slightly puzzled, which must have registered on her face for the man's expression turned into a vaguely familiar sheepish one. "Hey," James stepped forward laughing and offering his hand, "Sorry if I creeped you out."

"Oh no, not at all. I was… you startled me," she stumbled as she shook his hand. Sara thought that what she was initially going to say, "I was just admiring your smile", would have sounded like a cheesy pick up line. Upon closer inspection, she was almost considering throwing it out there anyway; he was even more attractive up close. His overall appearance was dishevelled yet sexy. He was dressed in snug jeans and a forest green top which called attention to his sparkling eyes of the same colour, and overtop he donned a worn, Indiana Jones style leather jacket. And the fact that his words were dripping with a Texan accent was definitely a plus in her eyes.

"Well sorry for that then. You're Sara Sidle, right?" This was met by another startled expression. James laughed, "I'm James Stokes, Nick's cousin from Dallas."

"Ahh," she exclaimed knowingly as she realized why his smile was so disarming. It reminded her of Nick's. Granted there wasn't much family resemblance, James had a lighter, scruffier look about him and his smile paled in comparison to the resident cowboy's, but now that he mentioned it he could see some similarities. "How'd you know who I was?"

"Everyone back home knows who you are," he smiled genuinely. Sara felt a distinct blush rising to her cheeks at the thought that Nick had been telling his family about her. "Nick usually tells us stories about all you guys at the lab," he continued.

"Oh," she said as if that made a lot more sense. "Are you looking for him?"

"Yup. I've been waiting here for half an hour or so, but I haven't seen him leave yet… he working in the field or somethin'?"

"No. He had the night off… He said that he wasn't going out tonight, but maybe he changed his mind. When did you stop by his house?"

"I couldn't find it," he admitted shrugging, "I have the address and I know where he keeps his spare key… but I got lost and hoped I could catch him and follow him to his house."

"I'm surprised that you could find this place. Most people have a hell of a time getting to the lab," Sara offered a weak praise to reassure him.

Now it was his turn to blush, "I had to follow a cop car." Sara made a gallant effort to restrain her laugh but failed miserably. Pleased the he had earned a laugh from such an attractive woman, even at his own expense, James chuckled along with her. Sara was relieved that he wasn't offended.

"Well, he's probably at home. Hang on a minute and I'll give Nick a call to come and get you. I've just got some paperwork to do at the moment, so you can keep me company until he arrives if you'd like," she offered.

"I'd like that," he replied a little too quickly.

"Okay, I just need to talk to Linda for a minute," she walked briskly over to the receptionist. "Hey, Linda, umm Greg's running a little bit late today. So whenever he gets here could just ask him to head straight to room 138 to meet me?" She paused for the woman to nod her head, "Thanks so much."

"Want me to give Nick a call too?" Linda asked as Sara started to head back to where James was patiently waiting by the doors to the rest of the lab.

"Please." Sara accepted, "I'll take his cousin with me… room 138…"

"No problem," the receptionist replied pleasantly. Sara resumed her path towards James. As she got closer to him he held open the door for her to pass through.

"Follow me," she said, smiling at his gentlemanly gesture.

"With pleasure," he replied with his most charming smile in place and he fell into step beside her as she led him through the halls.


	2. When Worlds Collide

"Hey Linda," Nick Stokes greeted the receptionist without looking at her as he burst through the double doors leading to the building. Instead his eyes darted quickly around the room in search of his tow-headed relative. "Thanks for baby-sitting Jimmy…" he frowned as he did a quick spin to make sure that his cousin wasn't sneaking up on him, which had unfortunately become a tradition with the pair. Despite being grown men and having accomplished the feat more times than either could count, James never tired of pantsing his slightly younger cousin. "Where is he?" Nick finally looked at Linda.

"Oh, Sara took him with her to one of the evidence rooms to--"

"Oh no!" Nick groaned and wiped his hand slowly down his face. "Just Sara?"

"Well, Greg just got here a minute or so before you did and he's supposed to join them but I doubt he has yet, 'cause he had to hit the locker ro--"

"Which room are they in?" his voice contained a new sense of urgency.

"--oom to change first and… huh?" she asked, confused by the interruption.

"The room number! The room number!" Nick repeated frantically, pounding on the surface of the counter in front of him for emphasis.

"Oh," she lifted up the post-it she had written Sara's message on, "Umm, room 138." Linda replied with a smile.

"Thanks," Nick called over his shoulder as he began sprinting in the direction of the room that held his cousin and his best friend. He felt his nerves get the better of him as he imagined the sort of embarrassing stories that James was no doubt regaling Sara with. Sure enough as soon as Nick made it within ten feet of the rendezvous point he could hear two familiar voices roaring with laughter. His heart plummeted into his stomach. He took a few more steps towards the door and he caught the tail end of a dreaded childhood story.

"…and, and he's s- he's stuck _covered_ in honey, chocolate sauce, and shhh- sugar for the res- rest of of the day!" James half stuttered, half choked through his howls of laughter. Nick walked into the room with a forced smile and clenched fists as James concluded his vicious tale, "We had _swarms_ of insects and and wild life f-follow us all the way back to the, the, the camp!" In the five years Nick had known her, he had never seen Sara laugh so hard; she was doubled forward, her face was bright red and with one hand she swiped away a few stray tears from her eyes. He wished that she would relax like that more often. His smile almost turned sincere at the sight of her obvious cheer… almost. But as his eyes trailed down her other arm to find her hand resting on top of his cousin's he was quickly reminded that she was laughing at him. He felt his face heating up as his cousin squeezed her hand and leaned forward, also hooting with laughter, so that their faces were mere inches away from each other. Nick squeezed his fist harder so that his knuckles turned white and his nails dug into his palms. He cleared his throat roughly to grab their attention.

Sara glanced up and giggled slightly louder as she caught sight of Nick. Her teary, blurred vision failed to pick up his rigid stance and his obviously artificial expression. She removed her hand from James' as she tried to compose herself so that she could speak again. James on the other hand sobered pretty quickly. "Hey Superman!" he exclaimed dashing over and clapping Nick on the back in a manly gesture. Sara made a mental note to ask about the nick-name when she could breathe properly again.

"Hey cuz," he replied through gritted teeth.

"I was just telling Sara here about the overnight in the woods we had at that summer camp... Remember? We were probably about seven at the time. The wilderness training?" James beamed in the direction of Sara, still pleased with himself for telling the story so well.

"So I heard," he shrugged off the hand that James had left resting on his shoulder.

"I wish your family would visit more often," Sara spoke up, having finally contained her mirth. "I love these stories!"

"How many did he tell you?" he asked Sara while glaring dangerously at James.

"Four, including summer camp," she replied through more giggles as she recalled the highlights of the other stories. Nick reached out his own hand and patted his cousin roughly on the shoulder before applying a death grip.

"Which stories did you tell, James?" still with the fake smile. But James knew that being called James rather than Jimmy was a sure sign that Nick was pissed off.

"Uh, tubing at the cottage…" James was distracted a bit as he saw Sara smile wider out of the corner of his eye. Nick's grip tightened and returned him to his task. "That history presentation in grade nine when you put in the wrong tape..." Sara snorted with laughter and Nick lost all pretences of a smile. He clenched his jaw together and his mouth formed a grim straight line. Slightly fearful now, James offered the final story timidly, "And, uh, the time that you, uh, streaked after the basketball game…"

"You know, I never actually thought that anyone would be naked in the middle of a gym full of people voluntarily," Sara broke in, still oblivious to Nick's reaction.

"Believe me, it wasn't voluntary." Nick stated gruffly still staring at his cousin. "I'm sorry to be a party pooper, but James and I had better get going now." Nick pushed his cousin towards the door forcefully. "You, go back to your car and wait so you can follow me home. _Do not speak a word to anyone else!_ Understood?" he hissed at his cousin in a near whisper so that Sara wouldn't hear. However she had finally picked up on Nick's hostility.

James nodded his head weakly and turned towards Sara. "I guess that's my cue to leave," he smiled at her. "Sara, it's been a pleasure. See you on Friday." Then James quickly scurried out of the room, closed the door, and retreated to the safety of his car.

"Hey." Sara's tone softened and she abandoned any hint of amusement she had left. "They were just stories Nick." She got up and walked over to stand next to him. Nick kept his gaze focused at the door while he tried to control his anger.

"Stories about me, Sara. Stories about the worst possible moments that he could think up," bitterness crept into his voice. Sara placed a hand on his bicep and rubbed it soothingly.

"It's not a big deal--"

"Not to you." Nick cut in.

"If it makes you feel any better, I promise I won't repeat them to anyone... but I do demand to see the 'history' video." Sara dipped her head into his field of view and offered a smile and Nick felt his irritation dissolving. As she saw his appearance softening Sara was about to ask how he had acquired the nick-name "Superman", but as she opened her mouth to voice her curiosity his face steeled again.

"Wait, what are you doing on Friday?" his cousin's parting words had finally clicked into his brain.

"Oh," Sara cleared her throat uncomfortably. "He asked me to dinner."

Nick took a step back and Sara's hand dropped off his arm. "Where?"

"I don't know he said he'd talk to you about it and then he'd call me."

"You gave him your number?" he asked incredulously.

"Well it'd be pretty hard for him to phone me otherwise," Sara attempted to throw in some humour to relieve some tension.

"Is it a date?" he asked, choosing to ignore her quip.

"I don't know," she was slightly taken aback by the hostility in his voice.

"Well did it sound like he was asking you out on a date?" Nick persisted, his eyes never leaving her face as he waited for the answer.

"I don't think it's a date," Sara decided quickly under Nick's uncomfortable stare.

"Do you want it to be?" he asked before he could stop himself.

"Look, if you're uncomfortable with this then I coul--"

"Do you want it to be?" he repeated more firmly.

"Christ, Nick! It's just dinner!" she snapped. She wasn't sure whether she wanted the evening to be a date, so she just sidestepped his questions.

"Well I don't like it!" he raised his voice, "I don't want you dating my cousin!" Sara was at a loss for words. She never expected him to react so strongly to the idea, and quite frankly it annoyed her that he thought that he could control who she did and did not see, even if it was his relative. Sure, she had begun to offer to break the date before, but that was just for show. She didn't really think he'd make her do it.

Nick felt as if the wind had been knocked out of him. When she refused to answer his question it was like she had belted him in the stomach. It was a resounding "yes". Before he could control himself he was shouting at her that he didn't want her to go. Now the room fell silent as both considered the outburst. Like George Costanza, Nick didn't believe in a blending of his separate worlds. And Sara, his friend, dating a family member would be a collision of his carefully segregated worlds… but this wasn't just any family member. It was James. And he was worried about more than a collision. This was a disaster in the making.

Sara had just opened up her mouth to respond when Greg walked into the room. "Hey guys," he greeted as he searched the room for a new face. Coming up empty he asked, "Where's Nick's cousin?" Greg wandered over to check behind and under the table on the other side of the room.

"He's our age, Greg. He isn't hiding underneath the desk," Sara replied with a monotonous tone. Thankful for the interruption Nick began to inch towards the door and was avoiding Sara's gaze. Greg caught on to the weird behaviour.

"Did I…?" he gestured between the two, "I'm not interrupting anything, am I?"

"Nick?" Sara relayed the question to him.

Nick cleared his throat as he placed his hand on door handle, "No. Forget I said anything. Have fun on Friday," he spoke quietly. He stepped out the door and into the hall way. "Oh, see you later Greg," he called as he shut the door behind him again.

"Did I miss something?" Greg asked as he watched Nick slink down the halls through the windows that made up most of the lab's walls.

"You and me both," Sara replied quietly.


	3. A Whole New Round

A/N: Sorry… I know I said I'd be quick with the updates. I don't really have an excuse; life just got in the way. Anyway, thanks for stickin' with this.

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"Try and keep up," Nick grunted as he passed by James' open car window. He crossed the parking lot to his Denali and climbed inside quickly. Once he had shut the door and secured his seatbelt he placed his hands in the twelve o'clock position with his arms lying straight down so they covered the center part of the wheel which contained the air bag and the horn. He brought his head forward to rest on the back of his hands, squeezed his eyes shut and exhaled a long breath. "I'm going to have some explaining to do later…" he muttered to the empty car. He took one more deep breath, sat up properly and started the engine.

Nick couldn't prevent his mind from wandering into bitter territory as he was rolling down the familiar streets to get back to his home. With every glance in his rear-view mirror he recalled more unpleasant memories of the man in the vehicle behind his own.

Their fathers are brothers and had ended up living a little more than a block apart on the outskirts of Dallas. This made the two families especially close; the line between cousin and sibling was often blurred. James was two and a half months Nick's senior and, being part of the tight-knit Stokes clan, they were always thrown together. Admittedly, this wasn't a terrible thing at first. They were enrolled in the same swimming classes, same day-care, same football teams, same schools… This meant that no matter what they were doing they always had someone there as a safety if they didn't know anyone else. Nick and James were often mistaken for twins, a mistake which they both stopped correcting around the first grade. They got along great initially.

However, eventually the pressure of being a Stokes soaked into James' mind. With such an overwhelmingly large family, it's often hard to get attention and especially hard to be praised. They each have several siblings to compete with; Nick has six and James has five. To make matters worse James and Nick are at the bottom of the brood so it was nearly impossible to do something original.

Every great thing had already been accomplished by one of the older kids by the time that the youngest pair tried. Getting better grades than the rest was out of the question: Rebecca had a perfect 4.0 average. The title of the artsy, creative kid was claimed by Liz. Music came as naturally as breathing for Stephanie. Colin was a star in every sport known to man. Jessica was a hippy. The resident rebel status belonged to Dave. Melissa was the misunderstood child. Hailie was the princess. No one would ever be able to match Mike's wit or comedic timing. Christina was the screw-up and Kelly was the humanitarian. And with a margin of two and a half months, Nick became the baby of the family. But it wasn't until the summer before the second grade that James' role became evident: he was going to be the bane of Nick's existence.

As the baby, Nick was raised in part by everyone and consequently became a sort of "Jack of all Trades". He inherited a lot of the older kids' traits so he contained the best qualities all of them had to offer. He was smart, artistic, semi-musical, athletic, easy-going, cool, understanding, chivalrous, funny, and conscientious. The only person that hadn't added their own touch to Nick's personality was Christina… she had tried but she had screwed it up.

So in addition to the role of the baby, Nick was the easiest person in the family to relate to and James couldn't stand it. It was near the end of grade one that Nick and James' relationship began to suffer. James decided that Nick was playing the perfect child and thus he was the perfect competitor. He thought that if he could beat his cousin it would make him the best Stokes kid, but he would have to beat Nick at everything. The competition began as soon as their football league did that summer.

In every sport there is one position that, win, lose or draw, is the hero. Whoever plays that position is automatically considered one of the stars of every game played. For soccer it's the goalie. For volleyball, the setter. For curling it's the skip. And everyone knows that the hero of any given football game is the quarterback. So it was that coveted spot that James wanted… but unfortunately for him Nick had a better arm. So for every game that summer, win or lose, Nick walked off the field a God. Family, friends, team mates, and spectators all cheered and praised him.

With every cheer James' resentment toward his younger cousin and the desire to upstage him grew. So from that point on nothing was sacred. It was immediately after their team had won the playoffs for their division that he pantsed Nick for the first time. It was during the medal ceremony, when James knew that everyone would be gathered and paying attention with their cameras at the ready. Since Nick was in such a good mood after the win, he laughed it off and so James didn't get in much trouble for the despicable stunt. And so a tradition had been born. Any time an opportunity presented itself where Nick could be publicly mortified, James jumped at the chance. The camping story, that Nick had caught the tail end of, had only happened because James was upset that Nick had been able to assemble a tent faster than he did. Thus, the following morning, after finding all the unused, sickly sweet items left over from their overnight, he had decided that it was best not to let them go to waste… and apparently Nick looked like he needed some toppings.

Ever since he was named quarterback, Nick had become an unwilling participant in a war. He had quit football shortly after in hopes of reverting back to their old relationship, however the new one persisted anyway. James did anything he could to beat Nick. When he couldn't beat Nick's grades, he'd sabotage Nick's projects. The history presentation that James had so kindly told Sara about had been caused because James had switched the labels on Nick's videotapes. Instead of a piece from a war documentary Nick had shown the class footage of himself, in SuperFriends underwear, around four-years old singing and bopping along to KISS' "Rock N Roll All Nite". He was humiliated, especially since he'd had a crush on his young, attractive history teacher.

The sports rivalry continued as well. The streaking incident? Nick had scored eight more points than James in the game. Angry at being shown up for the fifth game in a row, James found Nick in the locker room and told him that one of the guys needed his help putting away the safety padding behind the net. So Nick had left the locker room, grabbed a pad from behind the opponents net, and made his way over to supply closet. As soon as Nick entered, he was jumped by James' friends and stripped naked before being tossed back out into the gym in front of a sizable crowd of people who were waiting for the players to change so they could go home.

This ridiculous rivalry continued until Nick left Texas. From grade two until college, James had declared Nick an opponent. But grades and sports weren't the only areas to compete in. He also compared their positions at their respective jobs, both in title and wages. James had even followed him into law enforcement, but stopped shy of getting the degree in forensics.

However, the worst part of it was that James didn't respect any boundaries at all. Around the end of the third grade, during a period when Nick had withdrawn from the world after a night left alone with a new babysitter, James had taken the war a step further and invaded Nick's social life. He would spread fairly harmless rumours and try to take Nick's friends away; he even succeeded occasionally because Nick wasn't in the right frame of mind to put up a fight. Anything that Nick had to be proud of, his cousin would find a way to ruin, including relationships.

Anytime that James thought that Nick was into a girl, he would swoop in and steal her away before Nick got a chance to make a move. That tubing incident at the cottage happened in front of a girl who Nick had been trying to win over all week. James and Nick had been out on the lake with a motor boat when they spotted Nick's crush sitting on a nearby dock, watching them, with two other girls. James was driving at that point and decided to give Nick, who was riding behind in the tube, the ride of his life. James drove wildly, first bucking Nick off of the tube and then bucking the swim-trunks off of Nick, who had been caught in the tow and dragged behind the boat. Embarrassed about flashing his crush, not to mention her friends, Nick had avoided her for a few days… during which time James made his move. James had ended up dating that girl that summer and Nick was teased mercilessly about it when James told the story of it to anyone who would listen.

And Nick put up with this type of embarrassment and juvenile battles for years because he had become used to it. He wasn't a complete push over, and in his later years he would put up a good fight, but he was much too forgiving. James was family and Nick couldn't stay mad at family. It became a vicious circle. James would cheat until Nick was the loser and then start the game all over again. One of the best benefits to moving to Vegas was that Nick had finally found a way to forfeit…

…but whenever the pair got together, the game picks up exactly where it left off: in favour of James because Nick didn't want to play anymore. And the minute Nick had gotten the phone call saying that James was in the crime lab he could hear the starting bell ring to signal the beginning of a whole new round.


	4. Playing Dumb

"So what are you doing here?" Nick asked bluntly as he handed his cousin a beer from the fridge. They had been in the house together for about two minutes and James was still alive; by all accounts this was going better than expected. Of course, the two minutes had been in tense silence but at least it couldn't be called uncivil. The pair sauntered over into the living room and claimed chairs facing each other.

"I had some vacation time saved up and thought I hit 'Sin City.'" he offered what he hoped was an endearing smile. If Nick didn't buy it he'd have to spend the week in a hotel and he'd rather save that money for entertainment purposes. He decided to follow Nick's lead and use the direct approach, though with a slightly more euphemistic style. No use unpacking and wasting time on pleasantries if he wasn't going to be able to stay. "You don't seem all that thrilled to see me, Superman…" he trailed off and fixed his face with a puzzled look for effect.

"First of all, my name is Nick," he reminded firmly, "And I might have been a little more welcoming had your first task here not been polluting my workplace with degrading stories about me," he growled.

"It's not like I posted the football pictures on a display wall or anything, I was just telling Sara. You're not just colleagues…" James began fishing for information.

"It doesn't matter what else we are! She's still my co-worker!" his voice rose as he was trying to make his point. "That's where I _work_, James! That's where I earn my living! They have to respect me and they can't bloody well do that if you tell those kinds of stories about me!"

"I didn't think she would think any less of you …" He tried again, "You guys are friends, aren't you?"

"Yeah…" Nick absentmindedly gestured to a photo of the two of them propped up on a table a few feet away. "But you're missing the point."

"Well since you two are _so very close_ I assumed that you wouldn't mind this much if I told her some childhood stories; hell, I figured she'd already know a couple of 'em. Besides, she was really interested."

"I bet she was. They're useful for blackmail. And what do you mean '_so very close_'?" Nick's curiosity overrode his anger at the moment. The way that James said the phrase implied that he thought that Nick and Sara were an item, and if that were true then he must think that Friday night wasn't a date.

"Well, let's put it this way. I only ever talk to you when you decide to come to Texas for a holiday, AKA never. I haven't ever been to Vegas before and thus have never met her before. Yet, when she walked into the reception area, I recognized her, knew her name, and knew enough about her to strike up a comfortable conversation." James gave Nick a pointed look.

"And still, you ask her out," he was debating whether he should state rather than imply that there was something there between he and Sara… strictly to get James to back off, of course.

"Well, I wasn't sure whether it was friendship or something more, so I thought I'd try. And she accepted… which leaves me confuzzled."

"Confuzzled?" Nick repeated, clearly annoyed.

"A mix of confused and puzzled," he explained quickly. "So?"

"So what?" Playing dumb was probably the best route here. Dumb or vague.

"So is it friendship or something more?" James sounded exasperated.

"What do you think?" Nick narrowed his eyes.

"I think that if it's just friendship then you're an idiot," he quipped.

"I'm not an idiot." Nick, proud of his cleverly evasive response, placed his untouched beer on the coffee table in front of him and rose to his feet. "I'm too tired for this right now. Feel free to finish that off, I didn't touch it." Then Nick turned and padded towards his room.

"So I can stay here then?" James shouted at Nick's retreating back.

"Do you have anywhere else to go, Jimmy?" he spoke it as a rhetorical question but paused and looked over his should to catch the response anyway.

"Thanks. But, you know, if I'm going to cause too much trouble…" James began with a pathetic tone, knowing full well that Nick wasn't about to kick him out now; the use of Jimmy had returned.

"That's never concerned you before," Nick replied waving his hand through the air to show that he was welcome to stay. He started towards his room again.

"Hey Supes," he called out, causing Nick to sigh at the use of his childhood nickname. He turned with a tolerant smile on his face anyway.

"Yeah?"

"Thanks, man. And sorry for stepping on your toes earlier. I'll lay off the stories."

"Wise man." With that Nick made it the rest of the way to his bedroom and climbed into his oversized bed for a restless sleep.


	5. Making Messes

"Gmmmuhhh," Nick groaned as he opened his eyes for the seventh time since he'd gone to bed. He rolled over onto his stomach and reached over to his alarm clock to examine it closer. He let out a long sigh as he saw that only fifteen minutes had passed since he last checked. "This is ridiculous," he cursed as he threw the clock to the other side of the room with a small crash. "I officially hate Wednesdays," he muttered darkly to the empty room. Sluggishly, Nick tossed his covers back and slung his legs over the edge of the bed. Once his feet hit the floor, he stood and made a big display of stretching out his tired muscles accompanied by elongated grunts. He then padded his way to the bathroom.

As he was splashing water on his face, trying to entice the blood to return there so he looked a little more alive, he tried to think of a way to avoid another confrontation with his temporary roommate. He was too tired to deal with James at the moment. Well, that and he knew that the issue of his relationship with Sara was bound to be brought up for some more clarification and Nick still had no idea what to say…

The best option would probably be to say that they were in a romantic relationship. However if that ever got back to Sara, which James would undoubtedly ensure it did, then he'd be in some hot water with Sara and that is the last thing that Nick wanted. Nick towelled off his face and walked back to the sink. He braced himself against it and stared into his reflection in the mirror above it as he thought. The second best option would be to tell the truth: Sara and he were just friends… A frown flickered across his face. _'But, that would be like giving James permission to date her and it seems that Sara wouldn't be as repulsed by that idea as I would have hoped.'_ Finally, he could just tell James that although nothing had happened yet, he has feelings for her and is just waiting to make his move. _'Just to get him to back off, of course,'_ Nick quickly reminded himself. He may have even believed himself that time had he not been able to see his expressions in the mirror. However, if anything, that would probably just encourage James in his quest to win Sara's affections. Nick shook his head roughly and decided to just play it by ear.

As he walked down the hallway, past the opened door to his unoccupied guest room, he noticed that "Hurricane James" had left his mark in the few hours Nick had managed to sleep. He grumbled incoherently under his breath and resumed his route to the kitchen. As he walked through the living room he was grateful to discover that James wasn't there either. A genuine smile flashed to his face for the first time since he had returned home as he reached his kitchen without encountering his unbidden adversary.

Nick stared out of his kitchen window and into his moderate front yard while he waited for the kettle to boil for his coffee. He noted with considerable pleasure that only his Denali was parked in his driveway. Hopefully James would be gone long enough for Nick to shower and leave so that he could avoid another meeting for today. He began tidying up the plates that James had left strewn around the sink, cursing his irrational loyalty to his cousin, so he could be productive while waiting for his coffee. As soon as the kettle sounded he fixed himself a large mug, but instead of running back to his bathroom to shower as he had originally intended, Nick got distracted by the mess strewn around his house. Unfortunately, he had officially shifted into cleaning mode and couldn't tear himself away. So he flipped on some music and continued his effort to unpollute his home, periodically pausing to sip his coffee.

Since becoming a CSI, Nick had become more obsessive with his housework. He wasn't entirely sure about the exact reason he had developed a need for cleanliness, Lord knows what a slob he was in high school and college, but he knew that his job --as opposed to maturity-- was responsible. Usually he figured it was because he spent so much time analysing other places to microscopic detail that he realized just how much germs and bugs and such could be hidden in a cluttered, untidy room. In his darker moments, he thought it stemmed from the need to impress his colleagues if his home should be turned into a crime scene again. Should he be shot at home by another Nigel Crane, he certainly didn't want his peers to be disgusted with the scene beyond the fact that his blood was splattered across the walls. He had been embarrassed enough when Brass had found the copious collection of porn on his computer while they were trying to figure out what Crane had accessed besides his email. Or maybe it was simply to add some sense of control in a world that he had witnessed countless times was completely chaotic. Maybe it was a combination of all three. In any case, he couldn't walk past his living room without stopping to pick up a bit.

He had nearly finished returning the room to its original splendour when he heard the front door open. He took a few calming breaths before beckoning his cousin forward with the intention of lecturing him on respecting other people's homes. Nick didn't even look up as he heard James enter the room, he just launched into his speech, "You know, Jimmy, it's great that you feel so comfortable here on your first, _unexpected_ visit that you can just throw things--" Nick's gestured wildly with the combination of clothes and wrappers clutched in his fist. As he spun, his voice caught in his throat because when he glanced up he saw two audience members standing in the living room. He absently dropped the stuff in his hand. "Sara?" he asked in a tone that seemed to be questioning her identity. He glanced between his co-worker and his cousin, who was standing a little too close to her with a proud grin on his face.

"Sorry Nick," Sara cleared her throat and looked as if she were trying to contain some more laughter. He immediately worried that she had heard some more stories as her eyes darted all over the living room except where he was standing, trying vainly to smother her smile. "I'm just going to use the, err, bathroom," she pointed down the hall where she knew the guest bathroom was. "Uh, James said that it would be okay… he said you wouldn't even be awake yet." She quickly scurried towards the bathroom as a few giggles escaped.

Nick watched her retreating form for a moment and then shot a glare at his cousin. "What else did you tell her?!" Nick demanded in an accusatory voice, advancing towards James menacingly. "You said you were going to lay off the stories!" he growled.

James raised his hands in surrender and backed up a step, "I didn't tell her anything else about you; not even when she asked for some more!" He hadn't lost his grin yet and Nick was quickly becoming infuriated.

"I swear to God, if you're lying--!!" Nick raised his voice.

"I promise. I didn't say a word about it."

"So what did she find so damn funny then?" he asked through clenched teeth.

James let out a snicker that wasn't helping matters. "I dunno, Supes. Maybe the outfit had something to do with it?" As Nick realized what he was wearing, a look of sheer horror stole across his face. James howled with laughter.

Since Nick hadn't planned on seeing anyone just yet, he hadn't bothered to get dressed… the boxers he hadn't bothered to cover with anything were proudly sporting the Superman logo across his crotch and another over his ass. His face flamed with embarrassment. Nick knew he wouldn't hear the end of this for a long while. It never failed, the minute that James touched Nick's life it became one clumsy or humiliating event after another. "Clean up your goddamn mess," Nick snarled as he roughly threw a discarded t-shirt at his cousin and stomped towards his room.


	6. Freudian Slip

As he was about to pass the guest bathroom the door opened to reveal Sara, who was still trying to get a hold of her amusement. As he tried to brush by her she reached out for his arm. Nick stopped in front of her, placed his hands on his hips and tilted his head with an exaggerated sigh while waiting for her to speak. "Wait a minute," she smothered her amusement as she regarded his bothered stance.

He avoided her eyes as he responded, "Don't worry: I'm fine. In fact, I was just on my way out. So if you'll just let me change, I'll soon be out of your way and you and James can have the house to yourselves." His voice conveyed a mixture of bitterness and jealousy as Nick shook her off and continued down the hall and into his room. He tried to slam his door shut but Sara was right behind him and stopped it with her foot. When Nick heard the door collide with a solid object his stony expression quickly chipped away and he spun around to make sure that he hadn't hurt her.

Noting the immediate concern marring his handsome face, Sara quickly spoke up. "Just my foot," she pointed down to her extended leg which had blocked the door. Nick nodded silently and turned back to face his room, his relief rapidly returning to self-consciousness. He walked over to his closet and pulled out a pair of dark navy jeans and a plain white undershirt as he heard his bedroom door close. Forcing himself not to look, he headed towards his dresser and pulled out a pair of white socks. He started reaching for his underwear drawer but paused in mid-air and finally allowed himself to scan the room. He found Sara sitting on the bottom corner of his bed watching him silently. They stared at each other, both wanting to say something but neither knowing what it was. After a full minute, Nick snapped his head back towards his dresser and wrenched open his drawer and pulled out a clean pair of boxers-briefs despite feeling uncomfortable from Sara's presence. _'She's already seen this pair, there's not much worse in there…'_ he grumbled internally. He shut the door just as forcefully and turned towards his master bathroom.

"He said he was lost," Sara spoke suddenly.

Nick turned to look at her. "What?" he raised an eyebrow imploringly.

"That's why I was with James again. He phoned me just before my shift ended and told me that he had been out to explore the strip and was lost," she informed him.

"I see." Nick replied as he walked slowly towards Sara and took a seat a few feet away from her on the edge of his bed.

"I asked him where he was, he told me the name of the diner he was across the street from, and I went to meet him there. We had a brief breakfast and then I said he could follow me here," she continued matter-of-factly.

"Why did he phone you?" Nick played with the fabric of the clothes in his lap.

"Because he still had my number with him and he said he didn't want to wake you. He said that you were pretty angry with him already and he didn't want to aggravate you anymore, especially since you're letting him stay with you," Sara was studying his reaction. He nodded straight faced. "Are you angry because of me?" she asked in a tiny voice. He looked up at her surprised but then quickly returned to his clothes.

"No," he shook his head, "I'm not mad at you."

"But are you mad because of me? Because of what he told me or because James and I are going out on Friday …?" Sara paused but he didn't respond. Nick just stared determinedly at his lap. "Well, I already told you that I won't repeat the stories …" Sara eliminated the first option. She thought about all the questions that James had asked in the diner about her relationship with Nick. He had said that Nick wouldn't clarify whether they were seeing each other or steadily dating... James seemed to think that they were something more than friends though. "And--" Sara was about to ask if and why Friday would bother him but Nick quickly interrupted her.

"I'm not mad."

"Liar," Sara gave a strained laughed. "Earlier you sai--"

"Earlier I was tired, cranky, and not thinking clearly," he broke in. "Just forget I said anything; it has nothing to do with me. You can do whatever and date whomever you want."

"You're damn right I can." She didn't know why she became angry at his words. She knew that he meant to reassure her, but she interpreted it as him giving her permission, which she definitely didn't need. Or maybe it was just the fact that he was actually giving it.

"I just meant that you don't have to worry about my feelings. If you want to date my cousin, you're free to do so." Nick tried to clarify. He cast a side-long glance at her and noticed her confused expression. "This is coming out wrong…" he said decidedly as he wiped his palm over his tired face.

"I don't have to worry about your feelings?" she repeated confused.

"Right." He agreed and then realized his Freudian slip. "No. That's not what I meant… what I wanted to say…" he groaned with effort and decided to start all over again with a new approach. "Okay, remember this morning?" Sara nodded. "When I said 'I don't like it'?"

"And that you didn't want me dating your cousin…" she added helpfully.

"Right. I take that back… ah, both of those."

"So you want me to go on a date with James?" Sara let some disappointment creep into her question.

"I didn't say that," he offered hesitantly.

"So what are you saying?" she prodded, looking at him intently.

"I'm saying… that how I feel about this doesn't matter," he replied quietly and stood up hoping to signify the end of the conversation.

"But you do feel something." Sara stated this so Nick decided that he didn't need to confirm it. She let out a frustrated groan when he didn't react. "How _do_ you feel?!"

Nick considered the question. Truth was, he wasn't sure how he felt. He was more confused about it all than anything else. He certainly wasn't overjoyed about the prospect of her date with James, but he wasn't sure whether that was because it was with James or because she had a date. Until he had it all sorted out, he decided it was better to keep it to himself; he had almost three days to figure it out.

"Tired and gross," he finally answered her. "I need a shower. 'Scuse me," he gave her a half-hearted smile and strode to his bathroom ignoring her pleas to talk some more. He shut the door to block out her voice and turned on the water and the shower-radio to block out his own internal voice. He quickly shed the little that decorated his body and hopped under the soothing spray to wash away his worries.


	7. Psych 101

Nick had taken his time showering and lingered in the bathroom afterwards to shave, brush his teeth, and even meticulously style his hair… whatever reason he could think of that would delay going back out into his living room. When he had finally finished in the bathroom, he went out into his room and dug through his closet for another few minutes in search of something suitable to wear over his white undershirt. After considerable deliberation he threw on a brown, button-up, short sleeved shirt with a collar and, having run out of excuses, crept towards the door to the rest of the house.

That was nearly two hours ago, but he could still vividly recall the panic which swept through his body when he had passed the guest room. The door was closed that time and the noise emanating from within had proved that James was in there; what worried Nick was the possibility that he wasn't alone. He had stood there, staring at the door for a good five minutes listening intently to the sounds floating through it, straining to catch any hint of the familiar female voice. When none came he had rapped on the door sharply and waited for visual confirmation. James opened the door and Nick spoke quickly, "Hey, I'm just letting you know I'm heading out now… I've got some things to take care of before I head into work so… I'll see you two later tonight." He had added in the "you two" assumption just to settle his fears. Nick received the response he wanted -- Sara had left right after he had jumped in the shower -- and left before James had a chance to add anything else to the conversation.

Now Nick was sitting quietly by himself, overlooking the beautiful landscape of Red Rock Canyon. He had just started driving -- only making one brief stop at Krispy Kreme Donuts to pick up some comfort food -- and ended up here, one of the first spots he had ever seen in Vegas. It had become a special spot for him since it gave him somewhere to be pensive, a hard feat to accomplish since most of the better places in the city had become synonymously linked with murder, robbery, and/or rape.

It had taken him an entire box of donuts on the drive to the Canyon before he would admit that the hollow feeling in his gut was psychosomatic; the result of jealousy and not of an empty stomach. _'Pity,'_ he had decided, _'Empty stomachs are much easier to fix.'_ Absently he wiped away some sticky frosting flakes that were still on his jeans from the long ride over.

As he watched the wind gently play with the leaves in the trees, his mind danced with options and consequences. He needed to do something to banish the recently realized emptiness and as far as he could see there was only one way to fix it: tell Sara. Okay, so he wasn't so much occupied with the options as he was with the consequences. His relationship with Sara, as limited as it may be at the moment, had somehow managed to sneak up on him and become the most important thing in his life. If he said the wrong thing or came on too strong or even if he did everything perfectly, there's a chance that she may freak out and withdraw from him. Obviously that would be the last thing that Nick wanted… not that he really knew what he wanted. The only thing that this spontaneous trip had clarified was that he did, in fact, hate the idea of Sara going out with his cousin. And anyone else for that matter.

Nick circled his arms around his legs, pulling them tighter to his chest, and rested his forehead on his knees. He breathed deeply as he considered his situation. _'First I should probably figure out _exactly_ where I stand,'_ Nick reasoned. There was no point in risking his friendship until he was sure how deep his feelings ran. As was previously mentioned, these romantic inklings towards the lovely Ms. Sidle just sort of appeared out of thin air, as far as Nick could tell. Granted, he had always been attracted to her; however, he had learned early on in his youth that physical attraction, while important for a romantic relationship, is very different from having feelings for that person. He needed to figure out exactly what this was before he opened his mouth and got into any more trouble.

After another solid hour of uninterrupted thought, and some impressive recall from Psych 101, Nick emerged with three possible reasons that he had seemingly developed feelings for Sara overnight; all three named James as the catalyst. First, there was the possibility that Nick was manufacturing these romantic inclinations in response to James' interest in Sara. It's entirely possible that Nick mistook his underlying attraction and his strengthened need to protect Sara from his cousin as more-than-friendly feelings… so really, his "feelings" may just be a figment of his imagination, brought on by anxiety, aggression, and old insecurities that James' appearance had reignited.

Second, the two confrontations with Sara may have sparked something new. Both he and Sara have always skilfully avoided talking about relationships, be it their own or one with another party. It simplified things when they were hanging out. It let them flirt and cuddle up on couches without worrying about what it meant. However, with James around their relationship had been brought into question to each of them at least once. This, in turn, created the confrontations between them since neither wanted to think or talk about their own feelings but were curious about what the other felt. All the mystery and tension may have simply shown Nick the potential for more, which allowed him to desire something more than the friendship. So, in this case, the feelings are real but nothing more than a possibility at this point. He could escape both this reason and the previous one unscathed if he just kept his mouth shut and waited for the ideas to pass out of his head.

Finally, there was the terrifying theory that all that James had done was open Nick's eyes to the feelings that already existed. James' uncertainty first called attention to the fact that there was something there that was more than friendship. Then Sara's semi-interest in James brought Nick's jealousy out to show just how much more than friendship there was, at least on his side. Finally, the mysterious tension that seemed to hang thickly in the air whenever Nick and Sara got together to discuss recent developments gave Nick hope that his feelings just might be reciprocated, and thus made it a little easier to realize them himself.

As he weighed the odds, he realized that in order for this to make him this wound up, it was much more intense than "potential" feelings. Thus, he eliminated option number two. Now Nick was torn between the first and last options. The less courageous half of him wanted the first option, where he was just making up all this drama, because it was the easiest to solve; he just had to realize that he was manufacturing the feelings and then they'd disappear -- of course, if that were the case, then technically they should have disappeared already since he had figured it out.

The other half of him -- the louder, more honest half -- wanted the feelings to be real. In the back of his mind, Nick quietly admitted to himself that he could see past potential and saw something real and something great happening between them. He also admitted, though slightly quieter, that the other possible explanations weren't really possible at all; they were merely rationalizations to try and save his heart. The more he thought about it, the more clearly he saw that Sara had stopped being just his friend a long time ago. He tried for a while to figure out exactly when his thoughts of her had changed, but gave up after a few minutes, partially because he suspected he had felt this way for far too long to pin-point, but mostly because he knew it didn't really matter anyway. Fact is: he has slowly been falling in love with Sara Sidle for years.

Hesitantly, Nick clambered to his feet and brushed the dirt off his clothes. It was time to get back to the city and go to work. As he climbed into his car and pulled back onto the road he frowned slightly. He had spent roughly three hours here, made a humungous breakthrough and yet, Nick felt just as, if not more, upset as he had when he left his house. He had expected to feel relieved after his epiphany, but the soothing sensation that normally came with clarity never arrived. Instead he was feeling nervous and afraid about what he had to do next: now that he knew where he stood in all of this, it was time to find out what Sara's position was.


End file.
